For Jeff Dodds, CEO of Formula E, the Formula 1 world champion is already certain – he is so sure that he is betting a quarter of a million, but criticism is raining down
After three world championship titles in a row and a dominant 2023 Formula 1 season with 19 victories in 22 Grand Prix races, Max Verstappen is the clear favorite going into the new racing year – especially after his performance on the first day of testing in Bahrain
Not only the competition, such as George Russell from Mercedes, is certain that Red Bull will once again set the tone with the Dutchman in the 2024 season. Many experts and fans also agree on this point. Among the latter is Jeff Dodds, CEO of Formula E.
In an interview with TNT Sport, he makes a firm commitment and says that the title will also go to Verstappen in 2024. “He will win the trophy 99 percent of the time,” says Dodds.
The 51-year-old is so sure of this that he bets: “If Verstappen doesn’t win, but one of the other 19 drivers does, we will donate a quarter of a million dollars to a charity of the driver’s choice who wins the title. “
Jeff Dodds with a side swipe at Formula 1
Dodds is pretty convinced that he is right with his prediction. And even if he isn’t, he could easily get over the 250,000 dollar betting debt: “It wouldn’t be the worst day at work to donate a pile of money to charity. But he’s definitely going to win this season. “
“99% Max has got this in the bag” @FIAFormulaE CEO Jeff Dodds puts $250k on the line – will it make Formula 1 more competitive? pic.twitter.com/dwFpeBGFzz
– TNT Sports (@tntsports) February 21, 2024
In this context, the Formula E CEO can’t resist a little side-swipe. Because for him as a fan, Formula 1 has become too predictable.
“I run Formula E. None of us have any idea who will win. So I’m pretty excited. I know I was a Formula 1 fan. The season starts soon, and yes, I’ll be watching it, with all the fanfare and everything. But I definitely already know who’s going to win.”
“You can’t win 19 out of 22 races in a season, go into the winter season, develop the cars a bit, come back for the next race and not win again. I just can’t imagine that,” says Dodds.
Shitstorm for Formula E on Instagram
An Instagram post about Dodds’ bet on the official Formula E profile met with a predominantly negative response. Many commentators were critical of the action
“Having to talk about other series to drum up publicity … Yuck,” they say. And further: “Or just donate to charity instead of hanging it on someone’s failure? I find that so strange.”
Another writes: “Instead of celebrating the exciting things about Formula E, you’re focusing on a ‘negative aspect’ of another motorsport? How is that supposed to benefit anyone? I’m shocked that a group of people sat down in a room and said, ‘Yeah, this is going to be a great marketing campaign’.”
“The fact that you have to talk about Formula 1 to get attention rather than the races or the category itself is worrying,” adds another.
Dodds himself also gets his comeuppance. “Okay, this guy will only donate money to charity if something very unlikely happens. At least he’s shown how he thinks,” criticizes one of the commentators.
The next jibes: “Maybe he can afford it, given the prices charged in some countries to watch Formula E.”
Even Sky reporter Naomi Schiff felt compelled to comment and wrote: “I don’t really know.” So it seems that Formula E CEO Dodds has scored quite an own goal with his Formula 1 bet
